Friday Music Guide: New Music From Alex Warren, Jessie Murph, BTS and More

Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond. 

This week, Alex Warren is far from “Ordinary,” Jessie Murph delivers on her promise and BTS bring us back to live. Check out all of this week’s picks below:

Alex Warren, You’ll Be Alright, Kid 

With the success of “Ordinary” eclipsing even the wildest expectations, Alex Warren now has the opportunity to establish an enduring foothold in popular music — and You’ll Be Alright, Kid, a new album that features his No. 1 smash as well as previously released collaborations with Jelly Roll and ROSÉ, fleshes out the boom and gravel of his voice, with opener “Eternity” in particular operating in the same emotional songwriter register as his breakthrough hit. 

Jessie Murph, Sex Hysteria 

“Blue Strips” may have been the viral smash-turned-top 20 hit that finally delivered Jessie Murph to the mainstream, but the singer-songwriter has spent years honing her pop persona and hopscotching across genres with ease; Sex Hysteria contains plenty of the earworm hooks that made Murph’s voice ubiquitous over the past few months, but more importantly, the new album places her fierce spirit front and center, and gives her the widescreen platform that she deserves.

BTS, Permission To Dance On Stage – Live 

Although the long-awaited, full-throttle return of BTS is expected for 2026, Permission To Dance On Stage – Live — the group’s first live album, which is taken from various performances during their 2021 tour — serves as a timely reminder of their global appeal, from their Hot 100 chart-toppers to their fan-favorite album tracks that still resonate a decade after their release.

Zach Bryan feat. Gabriella Rose, “Madeline” 

Two weeks after releasing a three-pack of songs, Zach Bryan has quickly returned with “Madeline,” a heartfelt collaboration with Gabriella Rose that also precedes a newly announced album, With Heaven On Top; Bryan remains as prolific as ever, but none of the recent material feels rushed or tossed-off, and Rose’s gentle twang nicely plays off his own delivery here.

Alex G, Headlights 

Alex G signing to RCA Records was both a big deal and a natural next step for the indie stalwart: as the singer-songwriter’s commercial prospects have steadily grown, new album Headlights contains the potential of a true crossover for his deeply felt, idiosyncratic tone, especially if songs like “Oranges” and “Afterlife” find the right rock-leaning audience.

Myke Towers, Island Boyz 

A press release for Myke Towers’ Island Boyz describes the project as “an album that doesn’t aim to fit into any mold, but rather to create its own language” — and across its 75-minute run time, Towers centers not just his Puerto Rican roots but the entirety of Caribbean music, reaching a new level as a mainstream artist through synthesis and experimentation.

Cam, All Things Light 

As a fresh generation of country artists has stepped into the spotlight, Cam has remained among the most consistent in her class, with new album All Things Light reflecting on personal struggles and offering hope to those in desperate need of it; it’s a different shade for the singer-songwriter, but the newfound urgency powers this collection.

Editor’s Pick: Nine Inch Nails, “As Alive As You Need Me to Be” 

Nine Inch Nails’ studio output has slowed down over the past decade as Trent Reznor has focused on scoring film projects (and become a fixture at the Academy Awards as a result) — and while “As Alive As You Need Me to Be” is attached to a movie, as the first taste of the upcoming Tron: Ares soundtrack, the single gloriously flexes the band’s industrial-dance muscle that recalls the highs of With Teeth, and Reznor spends the track sounding commanding, re-energized back in front of the microphone.